How Greenhouse Growers Can Keep the Momentum Growing in 2021
March 16, 2021 I write this column well ahead of its publication date, and times change so rapidly that I am always cautious of saying things that won’t make sense at the time of reading. I had a wonderful time talking virtually during MANTS in January and will be doing so with other organizations who refuse to believe the weeds of politics and viruses have to be toxic to our well-being. What can be toxic, however, is to misunderstand the elation of having a COVID-19 vaccine available to us, and then growing complacent about the threat this beast still presents.
It used to be that COVID-19 only affected other people, and other places, and the staggering numbers did not reflect our families or circles of friends. I rather doubt that is true for most of us anymore. As for me, my daughter, my granddaughter, friends of my children, and friends of ours have been affected, and I personally have lost four colleagues to COVID-19.
My daughter, who is outfitted every day in personal protective equipment, called us recently and gave us a come-to-Jesus talk. Her hospital is overwhelmed, her coworkers are sick or exhausted, and even though a vaccine is on the way, the health care system is about to implode. Her message was simple: stay away from those you do not know and stay away from places you do not need to enter. Her last statement made the most sense. She said, “Dad, don’t take a bullet on the last day of the war.”
We don’t all have the opportunity to stay away, but please be cautious. We may have the enemy in retreat, but this war is far from over. I don’t want to write any more tributes to dead colleagues.
Welcoming New Gardeners
On a far brighter note, perhaps you have not realized it, but the industry, and hopefully you, did quite well in 2020. In fact, some of you had record years and are now moving trucks out and welcoming clients in for 2021. I saw in The New York Times how people in record numbers are embracing herbs, houseplants, succulents, and gardening. Just yesterday, I read about the huge backlog of seeds for the home gardener. Not that I believe polls any longer, but one I read suggests we picked up more than 15 million new gardeners in 2020. Who knew?
We are now viewed as essential (we always were) because people have realized we embrace a lifestyle they want to be part of. However, if we are the ones offering the lifestyle, let’s remember that landscapers, designers, and your neighbors are notoriously fickle. They want solutions, to provide those solutions, all we have to do is provide great plants that convey beauty and freshness and solve problems. Let’s see what we have out there.
I have recommended specific plants and ideas in recent columns, all available on the Greenhouse Grower website. Here are a few things that keep jumping in front of me, and why (solutions) I feel they are important. Such ideas may be different if someone else was writing this, but these seem pretty self-explanatory.
Something new gardeners can get on board with? Window boxes filled with calibrachoa, petunia, and succulents can beautify any home entrance.
Photo by Allan Armitage
Annuals
Heat Tolerance
Solutions: Taming heat and humidity
This is needed for all plants used south of Zone 6, but there are lots of choices in annuals, from sunflowers (great new ones now available) to scaevolas and pentas. Heat tolerance is a problem, and heat-tolerant plants are the solution.
Window Boxes
Solutions: Finite soil volume, beautifying the entrance
Every window box in North America should be stuffed with calibrachoa, petunia, and succulents, and dripping with spillers. I can’t begin to recommend the best ones in these categories, but let’s beautify house fronts everywhere.
Combinations
Solutions: Hanging baskets, patio pots
There is no end to the possibilities that growers can work with for combos. And oh my, if people walking out of garden centers are any indication, combos are only going to be more popular. Here are a few options:
- Bundled Combinations (Proven Winners)
- Cruze Control recipes (Green Fuse Botanicals)
- Confetti Gardens (Dümmen Orange)
- Coleus combos (Ball FloraPlant)
- Enchantment series (Westhoff)
- Trixi (Selecta)
- Sweetheart series (Suntory Flowers)
Perennials
Carex
Solutions: Native, low maintenance, color
Carex are not going anywhere and are only going to get more popular because of strong colors and ease of everything. Not only do they support the wow factor for the landscaper, the native forms are incredibly useful for jobs calling for native plantings.
Salvias
Solutions: Pollinators
The newer perennial salvias have gained momentum simply because they are better in habit, but also because people are finally realizing how excellent these plants are for pollinators.
Things to Talk About
Solutions: New plants and trends
Like new lavenders, great succulents, and even heat-tolerant delphiniums are coming into play. Don’t bet the farm on any of them, but be sure you are in line to try them. We may all be wonderfully surprised.
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